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Wednesday, November 29, 2017

Phillies Missing Links of the 2000s - #10 Josh Hancock

#50Joshua Morgan HancockPitcher

Unlike teammate Valerio de los Santos, Josh Hancock did participate in the post-game ceremony following the final game at Veterans Stadium. A September call-up, Hancock pitched in two games for the Phillies in 2003 and he'd appear in four more games with the team the following season. Hancock was recalled from the Red Barons three separate times in 2004, making spot starts on May 22nd and June 3rd only to be sent back following both games. He made two appearances in relief in late July when Ryan Madson landed on the disabled list. In those six games over two seasons for the Phillies, Hancock went 0-1 with a 7.50 ERA, striking out 9 in 12 innings pitched.

In need of a strong bullpen arm for the stretch run, the Phillies sent Hancock and fellow prospect Anderson Machado to the Reds on July 30, 2004 for fellow Missing Links member Todd Jones.

Hancock was a key cog in the bullpen of the 2006 World Champion St. Louis Cardinals, appearing in 62 games and compiling a 4.09 ERA. Tragically, an intoxicated Hancock was killed on April 29, 2007 at the age of 29 in a traffic accident.

This is a continuing series looking at those players who spent time with the Phillies but possess no baseball card proof of their time in Philadelphia. In some cases, the First and Last Mainstream cards listed above have been subjectively chosen if multiple cards were released in that year.